Lipstick
by Cheesecake-and-Pengins
Summary: Robbie ditches his paperwork and drags Jackie off to the pub. An unimaginatively titled one-shot for the lipstick challenge.


**Disclaimer: I don't own Taggart, I only wish I did.**

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><p><strong><strong>AN: So as this is my first foray into the Taggart fandom I'm looking forward to any reviews or critiques anybody can give me. Thanks in advance. :D****

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><p>Lipstick<p>

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><p>She was wearing a deep red lipstick. A colour that contrasted starkly with her pale, creamy skin making her lips stand out even more. Lipstick wasn't something Robbie usually noticed, it wasn't even something he thought about often other than how he was to remove it's stains from his shirt, but today it was all that filled his mind. He wondered if she had to keep re-applying it in order to keep it looking as luscious and glossy as it did now. He wondered if it had a taste of it's own, if it would smudge if he pressed his lips against hers, if it's colour would then stain his own mouth. He was so caught up in his musings that he didn't notice Burke trying to get his attention until a pile of paperwork was slapped down unto the desk with angry force, causing him to jump back in alarm.<p>

"Now that you've finally stopped staring at Jackie, could you possibly find the time to get some work done? There's a stack of paperwork as big as your ego for you to finish." Robbie rolled his eyes at Burke's sarcastic tone, automatically looking to Jackie for support, only to discover that she was blushing from the remark. Jackie Reid was blushing because he had been staring at her, or because it had been noticed by someone else. Either way it gave cause for thought.

"It can't be that bad surely." Jackie joked, bringing him from his musings.

"Well, not quite. But it's close." Burke stated dourly before stalking off.

"I wonder what's up with him?" She asked, turning back to face him after watching Burke as he locked himself in his office. Robbie couldn't help but notice that she refused to meet his gaze.

"Who knows." He shrugged off handedly, his mind clearly on other matters. "Fancy a drink?"

"What about your paperwork?" She asked teasingly as he stood, donning his coat.

"Eh, I'll do it later. C'mon Jacks, the pub awaits." He saw her smile and roll her eyes at his disregard for proper procedure and knew that he had won. Grinning triumphantly he strode out of the bullpen, followed only seconds later by Jackie, her high heeled shoes clacking rhythmically on the tiled floor.

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><p>Jackie was drunk. She could feel herself swaying slightly as she carried their drinks back to the table and knew she would be suffering for it the next day, but at that moment it didn't matter, she was happy. Reaching their table, she carefully placed both glasses on the worn surface, pushing one forward slightly so that it was within arms length of where Robbie sat.<p>

"Cheers Jacks." He acknowledged, his voice slurring slightly as he tipped his glass at her. He sighed happily as he placed his drink, or what was left of it, back down onto the table, snickering as he caught sight of Jackie's glass, or rather the lip shaped stain that marked it.

"What?" She asked self consciously.

"Nothing." He assured, though the grin still adorning his face said otherwise. Jackie rolled her eyes at his evasiveness, looking around at the crowd that had slowly gathered in the small pub. When she finally turned back to Robbie, it was to find him staring at her once again. Feeling somewhat emboldened by the amount of alcohol she had drunk, she decided to call him on it.

"Why do you keep doing that?" She demanded, looking him straight in the eye so that he couldn't avoid the question.

"Doing what?" He countered easily, the smile never leaving his face.

"Staring at me!" She exclaimed, her voice getting louder as she became more agitated at his refusal to answer. Watching him sternly, she noticed his eyes widen in shock and his adam's apple bob as he swallowed nervously, making her smile in response

"I...I didn't realise..." He tried, clearly struggling to find an excuse.

"You didn't realise what? That I noticed?" She teased relentlessly, enjoying his obvious embarrassment. "You know Robbie, you're not as subtle as you think you..."

"I was looking at your lipstick." He interrupted suddenly, looking just as shocked as Jackie at the outburst.

"I don't think it's your colour." She quipped easily, though a frown now troubled her features. In the back of her mind, Jackie wondered idly if it was the same reason as why he had been staring at her in the office. Interested now, especially since the blush had started to spread slowly up from his neck, she decided to find out what he had meant by that statement, no matter how much he protested.

"You're blushing" She stated softly after a few moments of awkward silence had passed. He scoffed at her, clearing his throat before trying to change the subject.

"I think I could do with another drink. You want one, it's my round?" He stood quickly as he spoke, nearly knocking over the glasses in his haste to collect them. Jackie watched him go, her eyes following him as he made his way to the bar.

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><p>Pushing his way through the crowds surrounding the bar, Robbie made sure he was in prime position to be seen by both bartenders. Leaning his forearms against the bar, he swore that he could still feel her eyes burning a hole into his back. Smiling flirtatiously at the young girl who served him, he turned back the way he came, relieved to see that Jackie's attention was now directed elsewhere. Setting the drinks down onto the table he grinned back at Jackie as she smiled thankfully at him.<p>

"So what's so special about my lipstick?" She demanded, still smiling and Robbie had to bite his lip in order to stop the groan that threatened to escape. He shouldn't have been surprised though, Jackie was always so unerringly direct.

"It's just...not what you normally wear." He replied carefully, wincing slightly at how idiotic it sounded. To his surprise though, he saw Jackie blush, no matter how hard she tried to hide it. Grinning, he realised that this was the second time today that it had happened, both times because of something he had did or said. Seeing his chance to steer the conversation away from himself and his behaviour, he leaned across the table, flashing his famous flirty smile in her direction. "Am I making you blush Jacks?" His question was enough to return things to their status quo. Her blush disappeared and her stare hardened as she glared at him

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><p>Her warm cheeks thankfully returned to normal at his question, though she couldn't quite control the butterflies that invaded her belly. "Yeah, you wish Robbie." She replied airily, her stare hard. They were both saved from saying anything else as last orders were called, breaking the atmosphere that had surrounded them.<p>

"Do you want another one?" He asked, tipping his glass in her direction to indicate what he meant.

She paused for a second, debating on whether or not another drink would affect her forthcoming hangover that much. "No thanks, I think I've had enough."

"Yeah me to." He agreed, finishing off the last of his drink before standing up and walking around to her side of the table. She watched him carefully as he lifted her coat from where it rested on the chair behind her, holding it up for her. As he helped her put it on, she felt his hands linger longer than necessary on her shoulders and had to suppress a shiver at the contact.

Once outside, the cold air chilled her to the bone, making her shiver once more. It also had the unfortunate effect of sobering her up somewhat, making her unsteadiness less noticeable. She unconsciously moved closer to Robbie, searching for warmth as they stood in the miserable Glasgow rain waiting for a taxi. By the look of crowd already gathered in front of them, it was set to be a long wait.

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><p>The crowd was starting to thin down, as the taxi's became more frequent. Robbie put a hand on Jackie's hip, pulling her backwards towards him as he felt her shiver once more. He felt her tense for a moment before relaxing against him. It wasn't long before they were front of the queue and her taxi came. He reluctantly let her go, smiling at her in goodbye as she turned to hug him.<p>

"It's been fun." She said simply.

"Yeah, we'll have to do it again if the boss doesn't deck me for leaving my paperwork." He smirked.

"Would serve you right as well." She countered, an almost identical smirk on her face, she stepped closer to him and for a wild moment he thought that she was going to kiss him. Her lips missed the mark though, landing softly on his cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow Robbie." She called over her shoulder as she walked away from him and climbed into the taxi.

For a moment he was stunned as he delicately ran his fingers over his cheek. The moment was broken however when he looked down at his fingers and saw the faint tinge of red that stained them, knowing that his cheek must be coloured the same.


End file.
